Books I'm Excited About: 2013

Really, these are books that everyone is excited about.  And I realized that most of these are the final installments of trilogies.  I love stand alones, but somehow I keep getting sucked into these trilogies! 

 

 Clockwork Princess   March 19   Cassandra Clare

I loved the Mortal Instruments Series, but I will admit, I think I am falling more in love with the Infernal Devices.  For those of you who don’t know about these books (and where have you been?!), they are about Shadowhunters, which are humans descended from angels who battle demons.  This series is set in Victorian London and has steampunk elements like automatons.  That right there should entice you to read.  London!  Steampunk!  Romance and swords and angst!  That’s the way to this girl’s heart.

 

While I love all the characters (Henry is so great), I absolutely adore Will.  He has some of the best lines.  I’m really looking forward to how Clare wraps this series up, though I know that no matter what happens with the love triangle, there will be heartbreak.  Both Will and Jem are such wonderful characters, and while I care a lot about Jem, I want Tessa to end up with Will.  I just don’t see how that can happen without destroying Jem, one way or another.  I’m not so sure I can wait until March, but I’m not so sure I want it to end either.

 

Shades of Earth   January 15   Beth Revis

Across the Universe was a book recommended by a student for our school book club.  I’m the sponsor, and my more dedicated members of the club often research books looking for interesting new releases.  We voted on and chose AtU, and I loved it.  The series is about Amy, who was cryogenically frozen and loaded onto a spaceship, and Elder, who is training to be the next leader.  They are on their way to colonize a new planet.  But Amy is woken up before they get there, and someone is killing the frozen human cargo, and the whole thing just goes downhill for them (but totally awesome for the reader) from there.

 I loved Amy and Elder and was immediately sucked into their story.  Then A Million Suns came out, and I think I enjoyed that one even more.  Now I am eagerly awaiting the release of Shades of Earth.  There are a lot of ends to tie up, and I’m very interested in seeing how Revis brings this series to a close.  I’m pretty sure it’s going to be explosive. 

 

The Moon and More   June 4    Sarah Dessen

I love Sarah Dessen.  I will admit, up until two years ago, I’d never read any of her books.  But one of my students was a huge fan, and she went on and on about how I needed to read Dessen’s books.  I was going to get around to it eventually, but I just hadn’t yet.  Then I went to ALA in New Orleans, and Dessen was there signing.  I bought three, got them signed, and then devoured each one in one sitting.  There’s just something about Dessen’s writing that draws me in.  The characters are real and the writing is solid and the stories are so addictive that once I start one of her books, I don’t stop until I’ve read it in its entirety.  So I’m really looking forward to this new story.  Summer romance and the beach?  I’m in!

 

Seige and Storm  2013  Leigh Bardugo

I pre-ordered Shadow and Bone because of the buzz on Twitter.  And the cover.  Isn’t it gorgeous?  I ordered it from Books of Wonder, so I have a shiny signed copy as well as a poster and buttons and I was happy dancing when they all arrived.  And then I read that book in one sitting.  Notice a pattern?  Shadow and Bone is about Alina, who discovers she has the power of the sun and must figure out how to use that power to help her world.  And there’s kissing, so that’s a bonus.  I have always loved Russian literature, so I loved that this had a very Russian feel to the fantasy world.  Alina is such a strong character, and I have to admit, I have a crush on both Mal and the Darkling.  Oh the angst!

 

 

Divergent finale  (Not titled yet)  Fall 2013      Veronica Roth

There was so much buzz around Divergent before it even came out that it was one of the books I was most excited about picking up at ALA in New Orleans. I fell in love with dystopian literature in high school, devouring books such as Fahrenheit 451 and 1984.  And Divergent didn’t disappoint.  Set in a future Chicago, five factions work to solve the world’s problems according to their beliefs in what those problems are and how they should be solved.  Tris chooses the Dauntless faction over her family (Abnegation), then (spoiler alert) uncovers a plot by her new faction to destroy her old one.  She has to decide what family and faction mean while not getting killed and saving those she loves.  And I didn’t even mention Four, who is such a great character – smart and sexy and broken.  And Divergent is so much better than that summary! 

 So of course I ran out and got Insurgent the day it came out, and of course the ending of that book made me scream in frustration that Roth wasn’t an autobot and had to sleep and stuff because I needed the next book as soon as I had finished Insurgent!  Ahem.  But now I have waited patiently and will have to wait a little longer than I thought since the book won’t be released until the fall.  But I’m willing to wait, albeit impatiently, because we all know that great books can take a while.  And I’m anticipating this one will be phenomenal.

 

Requiem  Spring 2013   Lauren Oliver

Lauren Oliver is a fantastic writer.  I’ve read Before I Fall several times and loved Delirium, which is set in a world where love is a disease and they have found a cure.  Ingenious, right?  But then Lena meets Alex, and she decides she might not want to be cured after all. 

 

(Spoiler alert)  I knew Alex had to be alive, so I was a nervous wreck the entire time reading Pandemonium because I knew her budding relationship with Julian was not going to end well.  And it didn’t.  So now I know there will be major conflict in this final installment of the series, and hopefully answers about her mom.  I am very interested in how Oliver will wrap up the series, and I can’t see how it can be done in a neat and tidy way.  And as a writer I like open endings.  As a reader, I need to know all the things and see all the happiness.  I’m sure Oliver will be able to strike a nice balance between the two.  Whatever happens, I’m looking forward to the ride.